Leave my rage to the sea and the sun
by SophisticatedFangirling
Summary: A two-shot in which Klaus makes a mistake and oversteps his boundaries with Caroline which might change their relationship forever.
1. Chapter 1

Klaus was standing in her hallway. How the hell did he even get in? Right, the invitation thingy. But she had thought he would at least ring the bell or _knock_ or whatever – anything else but just _break in _like that.

She looked at him ready to turn her face into a cocky expression, a mask that she had been using for a long time now to keep him away – away from her physically, but to her shame mostly out of her heart. Even though she was sure he knew exactly that was what it was, a mask, he usually smiled back at her, softly, and didn't call her out for her obvious denial. This time though, she was met with a hard expression, devoid of all emotion. It was an expression that she related to the Klaus she knew _before_ he had been kind to her. Irritated she wondered when that had happened, him turning into a before- and after-Klaus in her mind. Just, great. Obviously her efforts to keep him out were working. Stupid original hybrid dick!

Even when she had betrayed him, he'd never looked at her like this. This face was supposed to be reserved for people that needed to fear him. And she didn't need to fear him. _Did_ she though? Whatever, no way in hell was she going to bow down to him. Quickly hiding the look of surprise that had spread on her face, she put on her mask.

See? It was easy. "What do you want, Klaus?" she asked. Right on to the attack, defensive was not her style. She was Caroline Forbes. She raised her eyebrows at him, looking him right in the eyes, steadily. Even if she felt like something was wrong, she would not show it. She was not going to look away. If he was going to pierce into her with a scary stare, she would return the favor and stare back. Simple as that.

He didn't answer and his face didn't change either. Crap –

Was the last thing she could think before suddenly she found herself pinned to the wall of her hallway, so fast that even her vampire senses couldn't keep up with it. Oh no, oh no no no no no no no.

Her mask was no longer in place. She didn't really care though, being slightly preoccupied with the fact that an angry Klaus had his hand wrapped tightly around her neck and his face was close. Way too close. Their noses almost touched. Life had returned to his eyes but not in the way she'd hoped it would. He was furious. In fact he looked as if he was about to kill her. She was terrified and before she could control herself a whimper left her throat, coming out forced because of the grip he held her in. She saw his eyebrows twitch, but only so briefly that she barely noticed it.

This was bad. Calm down, she needed to calm down. Breathe (except that wasn't exactly possible).

"I should kill you," he growled, low and dangerous. Yet, there was a crack in his voice.

Oh great, forget calm down. Terror filled her eyes. This couldn't really be happening.

She closed her eyes. But stop, stop stop stop, she was no coward. This didn't have to mean he would, did it? After all he said "should" not "will", and really, that he had said it instead of simply doing it was a good sign, right? Although she was shaken and terrified she felt the strength returning to her body. She was Caroline Forbes and she had been through worse. Being tortured by her own father, for that matter.

She was not going to act like a frightened child. She never had, even when she was human. She remembered throwing a lamp at Damon and anger arose in her.

Hell, who did he think he was, that stupid original dick. No one was gonna treat her like that ever again. Even _if_ he was going to kill her she'd rather die with her head held high.

She opened her eyes again, her expression mirroring his, furious, _murderous_.

Now he was the one surprised. For a moment shock settled in his features.

Even though she was in a compromising position she felt the ecstasy of feeling powerful raise through her veins. She was a vampire, after all. And no man would treat her like that ever again, whether he was human, vampire or a fucking original hybrid dick. She had given herself that pledge, long ago.

What was he talking about anyway? He had to be angry about _something_, what could it be?

Courageous she pushed it even further and put her hands on his arm that pressed her against the wall, keeping her eyes on his, glowering at him.

Quickly recovering from the shock his expression darkened, his upper lip curling into a snarl.

Here we go girl, this is not gonna be fun. Caroline braced herself for whatever was to come.

"I might have given you the wrong impression, but I will not let you get away with everything. And now you've crossed a line that is never to be crossed, love." His voice was shaking with fury.

Adrenaline still cursing through her veins the fear didn't get to her this time. Instead, she furrowed her brows, confusion on her face – what was he talking about?

His expression didn't change; he probably didn't believe her but she was absolutely oblivious to what he was referring to. It didn't help that she couldn't actually say anything with his hand around her neck.

He'd always had an air of confidence around him, now it had turned into something much more intimidating. Crap. He had never looked at her like that. His gaze was intense, it felt like it was tearing into her but she forced herself keep her eyes set on his. No backing down.

Finally he released her. She lowered her head, her hands went to her throat and she closed her eyes as she choked and coughed, getting adjusted to the sensation of being able to breathe again. Note to self: it's a good thing that you don't have to breathe as a vampire. Not that that would help much if Klaus intended to kill her.

Other than lowering his arm he hadn't moved, still standing way too close. Had he ever heard about personal space? Wait, this was probably not what she was supposed to be thinking about right now; after all she was in mortal danger. But the fear was gone, which had to be a good thing, it made thinking clearly so much easier. She tried to look at the situation from another perspective.

He probably thought she'd done something REALLY bad, otherwise he wouldn't act this way. Or would he? He'd always been nice to her in the past, gentle, _caring_ even. He wouldn't just change his mind and decide to kill her, would he? He was Klaus, after all. She remembered the time when he had saved her from Alaric and suddenly she was overwhelmed with an aching pulling sensation in her chest, the feeling of _loss_.

She couldn't do this, she couldn't care about Klaus' feelings for her, she couldn't feel like she had _lost_ something when he decided to change his demeanor towards her. She crossed her arms, her head still lowered and fought against tears pooling in her eyes. Damn, fear had been better than this.

Stop this. Pull yourself together! Weak Caroline is gone, sassy Caroline needs to return, like, now.

"Answer me," he suddenly demanded, his voice rough.

She took a deep breath, making sure every trace of water had fled her eyes and lifted her head, looking at him again, her gaze strong and steady.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she stated dryly, hoping the hurt wasn't too evident in her voice. Her arms still crossed she shifted into a self-confident stance.

His eyebrow twitched. "_Caroline-_" he hissed.

"Stop it, _Klaus_," she interrupted him, pushing her luck again by stepping out of his close proximity to his right and then took another step away from him, never breaking eye contact. "You don't get to treat me like this. Nobody does! And now you will tell me what exactly it is that you think I've done."

_And you better have a goddamn good reason!_ She might have been brave, but she was not stupid, to say that one out loud. She was making demands, after all.

He gulped, doubt appearing in his eyes just to be replaced by anger again.

"I will not let you fool me, sweetheart." His voice was dangerous and low.

He hadn't moved yet and unconsciously she had taken up a defensive pose, not that that would help much against Klaus. She could take on Damon if she was angry enough, but the goddamn _original hybrid_? No chance. Her next breath came out a little shaken. Stop! She wasn't supposed to show weakness, she wasn't _weak_!

In an instant she found herself pressed against the wall again. Thankfully he didn't choke her though, his hands resting on the wall left and right to her face, cornering her.

Again he took her off guard, no mask in place.

She was pretty sure there was hurt written all over her face.

No, what she was feeling most definitely wasn't just fear for her life; that she could handle.

She cursed herself, when she suddenly had an epiphany. Being nervous plus her usual way-too-honest-in-the-wrong-situations-self she blurted it out before she even understood it herself.

"I trusted you." Great, that was definitely hurt in your stupid cracking voice. Well, done, Forbes. She looked away, angry and ashamed. She continued. "I seriously have no idea what you're talking about. But you better have a goddamn good reason for fucking _strangling_ me. – Oh wait, there _is_ no reason good enough for strangling me!" Yay, the sass had returned. She snapped her head back up again, glowering at him. Might as well go all in, got everything to lose anyway.

Slowly she seemed to get through to him for this time he looked truly confused. Even, maybe, like a hint of guilt in his eyes. He cleared his throat.

"You destroyed the blood bags I had of the doppleganger's blood." His voice was nowhere near apologetic, even though his eyes spoke a different language.

You're almost there, girl. Just keep it going, don't flutter, stay strong and you're gonna get out of this alive. At least now you know why he wants to kill you. That's better, it means that you're more in control now. Wait what – FUCKING BLOODBAGS? This had to be a freaking _joke_. Blinded by rage she actually pushed him. Having been taken by surprise it made him take a step back. Of course he wouldn't even stumble! It made her all the more angry.

"_That's_ why you just _choked_ me right now? SERIOUSLY?! And, no, I didn't! I didn't even know about your fucking stupid blood bags!"

Okay, she had just yelled at Klaus. Klaus in murdering-mood. No big deal. Oh, and she had pushed him.

His head snapped forward, and again he snarled – stupid dogs - "_Easy, love_."

She wasn't gonna buy it.

"What the hell made you think that I had something to do with _that_?!"

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath that seemed to be supposed for calming purposes. Good, Klaus calming down was a good thing.

"Your friends send you because they thought I wouldn't harm you. You destroyed the blood bags because you were still angry about the incident in the woods." He gulped again, his expression much less confident of the story he had just presented than his voice had been.

Caroline felt herself blush and looked away again. Yeah, right, _hot hybrid sex_. Thank you for reminding me that last time we met you practically sexually assaulted me.

While he seemed to have calmed down the way this conversation was going just enraged her further. How could she ever have thought that there was _one_ decent bone in his body?

"No, I didn't. Why the hell should I care about your blood bags or any of your hybrid-god-fantasy-trip as long as it doesn't involve Tyler? You still haven't answered my question."

He looked away, his brows furrowed. He seemed to contemplate something.

"I found my blood bags destroyed when I arrived home. And at the scene of the crime I _smelled_ you."

"You _what_?!" This was getting better by the minute.

"I smelled your perfume," he said, quietly.

Caroline let out an irritated snort and shook her head, and placed her hands on her hips. "I really can't believe this."

Klaus shifted his gaze again, staring at her looking like a rug had been pulled out from under his feet. "_Caroline_, what business did the smell of _your_ perfume have in _my house_?"

"_How_ the _hell_ am I supposed to know, _Klaus_? God, it's _creepy_ enough that you know what my perfume smells like!" Okay, this might have been a lie. You are very much aware of how _he_ smells after all. But nobody needs to know that. Least of all him. Hell! He just fucking strangled you! "I don't even know what to say. You're not gonna believe me anyway. Maybe you could try _strangling _me again if you think it helps!" she snapped.

He flinched. Now he was _definitely_ averting her gaze. He was looking down, and that was _definitely guilt_ in his face. Caroline was almost triumphant.

An uncomfortable silence spread, she caught herself almost tapping her foot. Okay, mortal danger seemed to be over. Of course she couldn't be sure. She should really just throw him out. And then move or something. For he had fucking 24h access to her house and she had no idea how she could ever be able to sleep in it again.

"So, Klaus. Are we done with our little temper tantrum. Can you, like, leave now, maybe?"

His demeanor had changed completely, he was back to how he usually acted in her presence. "After"-Klaus: All gentleman-like-careful and freaking puppy-eyes. Great. Seriously, as if she would ever fall for that again. She let out another sigh, mainly to stop her mind from wandering off into that rather painful direction. Then she bit her lip and looked away. This situation lasted way too long already.

"I'm sorry."

She almost lost her marbles there. Excuse me, WHAT did he just say? She gaped at him, taken aback. "Excuse me – _what_ did you just say?"

He looked at her, regret in his eyes, his gaze as intense as ever. Maybe even a hint of desperation in there.

"I said I'm sorry, Caroline. I'm sorry for… manhandling you."

She snorted again, nervously. Now she was the one shocked. How was she supposed to react to this? After all: This was Klaus. Had there ever been a documented case of Klaus apologizing? She didn't think so. But- WAIT! That didn't change anything. He had fucking _chocked_ her a few minutes ago! This was SO nowhere near enough of an apology. And, a tiny little voice in the back of her head noted, she could never trust him again. How the hell could she ever have been stupid enough to trust him in the first place. Stupid.

She gritted her teeth and shook her head.

"Get out." She said.

Well, now there most definitely, unmistakably was _desperation_ in his eyes. And she enjoyed it. Damn, did she enjoy it. Served him right.

"Caroline-" he started, the desperation now also evident in his voice.

"I said: GET OUT." She grabbed his arm and pulled him to the door, hesitantly he let her. Then she ripped the door open and shoved him out. He actually stumbled, a puzzled pained expression on his face. _The freaking puppy eyes_!

No way in hell was this shit gonna work on her now!

She locked her eyes with his, anger boiling in her.

"Fuck you, Klaus," she stated, calmly.

Then she slammed the door shut in his face, so hard that it shook in its angles.


	2. Chapter 2

"I trusted you." That had been the words she had used. And they haunted him, provoking emotions he wasn't quite comfortable with. They had surprised him, really taken him aback. After that everything had just come toppling down on him. He couldn't help but believe her when she stated that she knew nothing about the blood bags. He cursed himself for his impulsiveness. Thinking of the fact that he had been… well, not exactly gentle with her caused him to wince involuntarily.

_I trusted you_. Well, fantastic, the use of past tense had never been so insightful. He had just eradicated every glimpse of a chance he had had with her. His gaze darkened as he took another sip of his drink. He'd been trying to distract himself from all that had happened previously that day.

When he'd found the destroyed blood bags with the scent of her perfume hovering all over them his mind had went blank. _Betrayal _was what he had felt, even more than the blinding rage that shook him to his core. If he was honest he'd have given her a free pass for virtually everything but this went so far beyond anything he'd ever anticipated that he had just cracked. Switching off his emotion he had gotten ready to – worst case scenario – rid the world of her existence or at least make her beg for forgiveness. But even in his state of rage, any thoughts of that notion weren't exactly comfortable - which only made him all the more angry.

He was used to people cowering when faced with his rage, begging for their lives. Her reaction had surprised him. It shouldn't have, really, her strength was one of the traits he fancied about her. First he thought it was just cowardice, that she held the belief he wouldn't harm her. But then again she seemed thoroughly afraid in the moments he'd taken her off guard. That was when he, even in his rage, took notice that her demeanor was far from a sign of cowardice but on the contrary, bravery. And even though he tried his best to avoid it he slowly felt his control slipping, and his emotions getting the best of him.

And now apparently he hadn't only lost every chance of engaging in hybrid production in the future, but also _Caroline_. And the worst of it all was that he hadn't even known he _had_ her in the first place. Well he hadn't, really, but he had most definitely had her trust. She had seemed genuine when she said it, as if she was surprised by it herself.

And _her face_, the way she had looked at him, those little moments before she caught herself. It tore at his unbeating heart and he hated it. Perhaps the easiest way was to compel her to forget about the incident. It meant violating her trust again. He should be busy finding the real culprit but somehow he couldn't bring himself to get up from his sofa, he had already lost too much today. He continued sulking until the familiar fragrance of a certain perfume entered his nose. _Caroline? _

But when he turned his head to face the door the one standing there was none other than his baby sister.

* * *

Again, he was at her house, again in a state of distress. He gritted his teeth, he didn't like the way things had turned out. But apparently he had lost his sister, too, and he just couldn't take losing everything he'd ever cared about in one day. Now he was here, ready to wipe her memory despite the uneasiness he felt, both because of his previous actions and what he was about to do.

She'd already perceived his presence, he was sure of it. Hesitantly he entered. Unlike the last time she didn't come to meet him in the hallway. He heard a faint rustling up in her bedroom and flashed there quickly. She stood in the corner the farthest from the door, facing him. She held a makeshift stake in her hand, glowering at him as if she intended to kill him with her gaze.

He felt his mood lighten, her stance was really quite amusing, adorable even. Despite himself, a grin spread on his face. "You know that you can't kill me with that, love."

"Well, I was hoping that it would _hurt_," she spat at him, her gaze wary of his movements. His first impulse was to retaliate but then he halted. He had caused her to be this suspicious of him. As she had painfully vocalized he had strangled her at their last encounter. He gulped, trying to cope with the remorse. It promised to govern every single future interaction between them. Well, it was too late anyway.

"What _else_ do you want, Klaus?" she asked.

He looked her over. She was glued to the corner of her room and he hated to be the one restricting her. He usually held no desire to treat people with respect but with Caroline it had always just come naturally to him. It had been quite refreshing actually. He felt the need to make it right, restore what could be saved and repair what was broken. He put on a serious expression, ridding his face of every trace of mirth, trying to connect with her, needing her to understand his intentions were honest. Except they weren't, but he pushed that to the back of his mind.

"I'm afraid I made a mistake today, sweetheart. And I am sorry it was you who had to bear the consequences."

"Yeah, that's where we left off. And after that I asked you to _leave_, remember?" She elevated her chin, her hand twitching around the piece of wood in her hand.

He gulped again, keeping himself from retaliating, it wouldn't help his case. This was going to be difficult. "You don't need to be afraid of me, love. I will not harm you. I promise."

She laughed hysterically. "_Seriously_?! And what part of your behavior should make me believe that? The fact that you broke into my house _twice_ now, that you threatened to kill me or that you actually had your hand around my throat?"

He winced and closed his eyes. "I am _sorry_. Please just hear me out, Caroline."

He noted that she seemed to have relaxed for she was gesticulating wildly while talking, well, actually, yelling, the wariness having left both her gaze and her stance. "How about _no_! And by the way, even if you think you're doing better right now: You really aren't. You are _forcing_ me into this situation with you right now, you don't care the least bit if I even want to hear what you have to say. So, no, I don't want to _hear you out_, I want you to _leave_ and never return again!"

He tilted his head to one side and looked at her, his expression curious. "So you _do_ believe me that I'm being honest here." He wasn't sure if it was a statement or a question but he now saw cracks in her mask and fully intended to work with that.

She gasped in indignation. "I did _not_ say that!"

"You _did_, however, say that you trusted me," he asserted, his eyes searching hers.

For a second she seemed to have been caught off guard, looking almost as if she had been caught doing something she wasn't supposed to. Then she blushed and looked away. "Well, you must have misheard me." And despite her obvious best efforts, she failed at keeping her voice at the same level of conviction and annoyance as before.

Why was he doing this? He should just get it over with and compel her. But somehow he felt drawn to confronting her about her previous statement. _To see if there was hope left_. He winced at that idea. He wasn't supposed to be this weak. He wasn't supposed to draw this out. But when he elevated his gaze back to her form he knew that he had lost the battle against himself. He wanted to push away the moment in which he had to break her trust again, but there also was a strange curiosity driving him to circle her further. He had lost everything anyway; there was no point in holding back.

"Why did you trust me, Caroline?" he asked, moving towards her, slowly, as if not to startle her.

She took a deep breath, her brows furrowed and then looked back up at him, tensing up again as she noticed him advancing towards her. She seemed to struggle with herself about what to do. Just a little push in the right direction…

"Why, Caroline? What is it that I have done that made you trust me?"

Now she gasped in annoyance. "Would you please, like, stop saying that? You make it sound like something it is not."

Standing only a few feet away from her he halted, crossing his arms. "Then tell me, love. What exactly isn't it? Or what is it, if you'd prefer answering that question."

"I _prefer_ not answering _any_ question. I'd _prefer _you to _leave_."

"Well then let me establish that I'm afraid I can't concur to your wishes in that matter. You will only draw this out longer if you keep on trying to evade my questions."

Now she was clearly more annoyed than scared, which he decided was a good sign. He'd slowly but surely lure her out of her defenses, pushing buttons until he had here where he wanted her. Now, where exactly was that? Well since he would compel her one way or another, he'd just see how far he could take it.

"I can't even believe this right now. What _happened_ to you? I never thought you were such an ass." Suddenly a realization seemed to dawn on her and she shook her head in anger. "Of course I knew. You just fooled me into thinking that there was _something_ good in you. Which I now know clearly isn't the case." With that she looked up at him again, defiant. Yet she hadn't quite succeeded in banning the doubts she had from her mind. He wouldn't let her.

"And how did I do that, love?" His tone of voice patient, waiting he kept pushing the same button. And surely enough, she snapped.

"Oh, I don't know! Maybe by _saving_ my life two times, or telling me you_ fancied_ me, or by _not_ killing me when I participated in trying to kill you?" Mentioning the last part clearly wasn't a smart move, which, judging her expression was something she realized as well.

He stiffened and clenched his teeth with his lips shut tight. Easy, this was not was he was here for. "I saved your life three times, sweetheart," he stated, his voice dry.

"Oh, please, if you did anything you saved me from yourself that day. I'm sure as hell not giving you any credit for that one."

"Then, what do you give me credit for?"

"Klaus, **stop** playing mind games with me! What do you want?" It seemed he had finally broken her defenses. Her tone of voice and stance was unnerved and desperate, the wariness was gone again.

Quickly he flashed forward until he stood only inches before her, her hand snapped up, trying to stake him but he caught her wrist without even breaking his gaze from hers. His pupils dilated and it was already too late when her eyes widened in realization. "What do you think I want?" he asked. "I don't know. I'm not even sure if you know yourself. But I think you want me to forgive you and give you a chance. Or you want to compel me, or… you want to hurt me," she answered, being forced into honesty.

He let out a sharp breath, keeping his pupils dilated. He was not ready to face her reaction to the fact that he had just compelled her, yet. "I am not going to hurt you, Caroline," he said, his voice low. He frowned at himself. "You are not going to hurt me," she repeated, her tone of voice empty, just as the expression on her face. In discomfort he broke away and closed his eyes as he gritted his teeth.

Suddenly he was overcome by a wave of what could only be called guilt. He was not used to this sensation and so she actually managed to surprise him and make him stumble a bit when she pushed him. "You **son of a bitch**! **I hate you**!" she screamed and when he looked at her face again there were tears in her eyes. He flinched again, losing control of his emotions. As if to hold onto something he grasped her shoulders.

"Caroline, look at me!" he pleaded. She frantically shook her head, her eyes pressed shut, her hands on in his chest, trying to push him away. "No, no, no!" she exclaimed, struggling against him, but he didn't move.

After a few seconds she finally calmed down, her breath heavy. She had her head lowered, her eyes still closed. She had managed to keep her tears at bay; the panic seemed to be subsiding. She gulped, then she spoke, calmly but a little shaken. "If you do this to me I will hate you forever."

"I am sorry, Caroline." His voice was broken and just as shaken as hers. Surprised she opened her eyes, glancing at him from the corner of her eye. She gasped when she saw the expression on his face, hurt and desperation barely contained. "But I have already lost too much today, I can't lose you, too."

"You never had me, Klaus," she said, but her voice was devoid of mischief or annoyance, it was almost soft.

His jaw tightened, as the softness in her voice calmed him down. He focused again and then, before she had a chance to even grasp what was happening his pupils dilated again. "Tell me what you think of me, Caroline," he said, his voice composed and tender.

She took a sharp breath and then started talking. "I should hate you, but I don't. You destroyed the lives of the people I love and continue to threaten all of us. And I just want peace, but the longer this craziness goes on, the more I think I am never gonna get it. And that is your fault and I hate you for it. But then again you showed me a part of yourself that you haven't shown any of my friends. And as much as I want to tell myself that it's not real… when you saved me from Alaric you just… the look on your face seemed so honest, I actually believed that you genuinely cared for me. But then you just went off and tried to kill my best friend again! It's just… I don't get what you want from me. You don't seem to respect anybody at all. Then again it's probably because of your messed up family-thingy. But _for god's sake_, you put them in _coffins_! I…" She took a deep breath and looked down.

"The worst thing of all is that if you'd met me a year ago I'd have fallen at your feet instantly with your fucking romantic drawings and presents and compliments. But now I'm not that person anymore and have Tyler, and…" Tears pooled in her eyes.

"I hate that you make me say this or even _think_ this, because I haven't even admitted it to myself but I think despite everything I am falling for you a little." He gasped.

"And I absolutely _hate_ you for this. I hate being compelled and I hate being disrespected. Don't you even think for one second that this changes _anything_. Even if you and me were the only people left on this planet I still would _never_ forgive you for this." A single tear slid down her cheek as she looked right back at him. The expression in her eyes was nothing like the anger he had seen in them before, it was cold and definitive.

He lowered his heads towards hers until both of them could feel the breath of the other on their faces. Then he closed his eyes and gently pressed his lips onto hers, feeling her tense up. The sensation of her soft lips on his caused him to shiver and as he started kissing her in the most tender, careful way he deemed possible. Immediately he felt a pull in his chest, a combination of sweet rapture and tormenting regret taking over his senses as he felt her ease up in his arms and, despite herself, kiss him back. Both of them lingered in the moment that seemed to drag on for an eternity, before he finally broke away. He closed his eyes again and pressed his forehead to hers.

They stood there, silently and motionless, for a while. Then he opened his eyes and elevated his head. She opened hers, too and looked at him, sadness in her eyes. His eyes dilated.

"You are going to forget everything that happened between us today," he said, both his voice and expression devoid of all emotion.

And instant later he was gone.


End file.
